Costly Living

Anyone who fills out a visa form is warned repeatedly of the relatively high cost of living in Australia. (And no, it's not because of the number of relatives you may have--the more relatives, the higher the cost---harhar). It took me many months to come to terms with the reality and stop converting everything to pesos.

 It was too stressful. I had to  start enjoying the experience of shopping and stop regretting being parted with my money. I figured I can always make more (have to stay positive you know). The basics I had little option but to accept.  But I would search high and low, even do the rounds of the nearby supermarkets to get the best deals. 

Woolworths, Coles, Fishers, Foodworks, I have all their loyalty cards. No such thing as loyalty as far as I was concerned though. At least not for food, no sirree. Whoever gives me the best deals gets my hard-earned moolah. I've always been an "aware" shopper, e.g. I carefully study the ingredients and compare items on a cost per gram/ml/unit basis. I unashamedly would whip up my trusty pocket calculator in the middle of the aisle. Even if I end up paying more for bulk purchases, at least I am satisfied with the knowledge that I was squeezing the best value for money. It's from being a single mother for so long---being self-sufficient also meant being wiser and more frugal with money than the normal housewife or houseband. Thankfully, there aren't many point-of-purchase promo girls hawking their products in our neck of the woods. 

  SM Supermarket on a weekend

Unlike Manila where there might be one in every aisle! It's the cheap labor you see. Hiring people is cheaper than printing catalogues.  Besides, it's employment generation for the masses. I would often take pity on them and end up buying their stuff or at the very least taste it. Hey, I've been in sales and it's a tough job so I do have a soft spot for the hard-working sales people. Even though what I sold were worth several 000's more, the effort is the same. God bless the sales folks. But I digress. Typical items in my cart: rice @ $2+/k, multigrain bread @ $3.50/loaf, eggs (large) @ $3/dozen (caged not free-range--I honestly do not see the fuss about this. You think the chook prefers to work for its food than just wait for its food to come to them? You think it even cares?)--I've since reconsidered after seeing a documentary on chicken factories in Au where the chook is crammed in small cages. They give us food so we owe it to them to provide them good quality life, chicken breast fillets @10/k,rump steak @ $16/k or eye fillet @ $26/k for the odd occasion, barramundi fillets @ $15/k, tiger prawns @ $24/k, 200 gm jar of good instant cofee (Moccona or Nescafe Gold) @ $15, brown sugar @ $2/k, assortment of vegies worth $20, fruit in season another $20, bananas @ $1-3/k--they only sell the bland cavendish---I will only buy if less than $1 remembering that the tastier variety in the Phils cost only a dollar for a whole bunch!! 

Tagaytay fruit stall; $1 for a whole bunch 

Permanent wet markets are non-existent where I am so everything has to come from the supermarket. Although there are a few mom and pop fruit and vegie shops that cut out the middle man, alas their prices are not competitive.  

Home-made goodies are not cheap

I try to support the local farmers by visiting the weekend country markets from time to time. I am fortunate to live in  Mildura, the foodie haven, the food bowl of Au. I go for the ambience, for the odd home-made fig jam, for the unique hand-knitted wool scarf, for the lovely feel of community. You'd think though we'd get wholesale prices for our food and wine? Not a chance. The economies of scale, law of supply and demand at work. If we only had more people the cost would be spread out more? I reckon. In fact, the farther from the major cities, the less people, the higher everything costs. 

street musicians at Myer Bourke St., Melbourne

Apparel. I could not for the life of me bring myself to buy clothes here for the first couple of years. I kept comparing prices and could not psychologically justify the purchase. An ordinary T-shirt would cost anywhere from $20-30 and they're well, pretty ordinary (read ugly). Dresses over $100. Nikes $120++. Unless I chance upon a sale, I would not voluntarily shop for clothes or shoes. My internal dialogue would go like this "$100?!! For that money I could buy several cool outfits in Greenhills or at least 3 pairs of killer shoes in Greenbelt". I cringed at the prices and lamented at what I could buy for the same money back home. The worst part of the shopping is most of the products are made in China!! What the? That was my first major disappointment--even the designer brands are made in China. Heck I'll just wait for when I'm next in the Philippines and shop till I drop! If the exchange rate holds up (1:42 last I checked) I'll have plenty of change for a daily massage. Yey!

Ahh how I miss the cheap massages

Pampering and other girl stuff. The first thing on my to do list when I get home: get a massage. Then second thing: get a massage. Third: get a massage. Yes, I LOVE massages. Swedish, shiatsu, thai, detox, reflexology, reiki, volcanic stones, I LOVE them all. I used to have them weekly before the big move. At P250 plus tip ($6 ridiculous!), how could I not? Home service to boot. Since moving, I can count them with the fingers of one hand. At $50-80 a pop it is not difficult to understand. Now if I can only get my dear husband to give me a proper one every week I wouldn't be so homesick for one ha! Hair colour (regrowth only) is $40 which I have to do every 3-4 weeks. Haircut @ $20. My hairdresser does a good job but I miss the extras they give in Manila---the shampoo with head massage, blow-dry and styling, the back rub whilst waiting for the dye to set. The cup of coffee or cold iced tea---all for $10-12. Sigh. I've never gotten a manicure or pedicure here because I refuse to pay $30-50 for what costs a measly $5-10 back home. And I even get a nice hand and foot massage with the nail job. Yes, us Pinoys like to give as well as receive massages. Bikini wax is $20 vs $5 in RP. Because of high cost of maintenance here I've resorted to DIYs (do-it-yourself). I wouldn't recommend the waxing though eowww!

all for $8!!

Eating out. An average 3-course meal (starter, main, dessert) costs maybe $80-100 for two, drinks not included. Beer @ $3, glass of wine @ $7, coffee $3.50. My Aussie guests went berserk in Manila with beer costing only 50c. One of the best fine dining places in Manila, La Cocina de Tita Moning costs under $40 per head but that's a 5-course gourmet feast++!! A regular upmarket meal in Makati might go for $60 for two including drinks. A quick chow at a fastfood or takeaway shop maybe $8-10 vs. P100 or $2.50 at a regular Manila food court. Stan's best food experience is at Market Market fresh seafood center at Fort Bonifacio where we ordered garlic crabs, two huge plates for a measly $8, rice included. I shudder to think how much it would cost over here in Au. 

yabbies for $16 (plain steamed) sigh...

The closest thing to it would be yabbies, taste like a cross between a lobster and a prawn, yummy but hard on the pocket @ $16-22/k!! We love eating out when we're over there more so than over here for obvious reasons.

But what makes the biggest difference overall, aside from the costs, is the quality of the customer service we get anywhere in the Phils. Waiters, salesgirls, etc. patiently hover over you awaiting your next order. It's almost embarassing if you're not used to it! I think I wouldn't mind so much paying the high price here if the customer service is there. But it's not. Nearly everything is self-serve. Your fill up your own tank. You pump your own tires. You pay for your meals at the cashier (even the upmarket ones). You get your shoe size among the stack of boxes yourself. Vendors are friendly enough but I guess I was looking for the extras. Oh well, I'll get plenty of that when I get home soon enough. Can't wait.